To Hell And Back
by Kakomine
Summary: Natsu is the Prince of Fiore and the Fire Dragon Slayer. Lucy is none other than 'The Demon'. What brings the two together? The desire for adventure and comradeship. An epic adventure through the dark recesses of Hell will begin! WARNING: NaLu!
1. The Fated Meeting

Chapter 1

"HIYAAAAAH!"

Lucy swung her leather whip around in a circle, effectively trapping the Shikabane in its wrap. Now all the blonde had to do was send it to hell. She pressed her right palm against the Shikabane's forehead, and shoved the hilt of her whip into its foul jaw to prevent it from biting and infecting her.

"By the name of the Devil's Assassin, I banish you to your foul grounds of disgrace - to Hell!" As Lucy said those final two words, the disgusting Shikabane fell into a fissure in the ground that appeared at the blonde's incantation.

Once the Shikabane was gone, she sighed and rested her head against a filthy wall. She was in the city of Magnolia, Fiore's capital city.

Well... Lucy was in the slums of Magnolia - The Drag. It was where all the poor beggars came to live, where the most notorious criminal could hide, and where Shikabane were making their lair. It was also where Lucy was made a half-demon, and the Devil's personal assassin.

The blonde suddenly heard shouts from the street leading into the alley she was in. Shit. The Royal guards had already sensed her presence in the city, slaying 'innocent' people.

'Heh, well, they have no idea I'm saving their asses...' Lucy thought smugly to herself. The shouts and telltale shuffles of feet warned the teen about the impending fight. Lucy's hair changed to a slightly reddish color, while wings and tail sprouted from her back. The teen flapped her wings and leaped to the top of a building overlooking most of the city.

The top of this building is where she made her home. A huge tent covered most of the area on top, and underneath is where she had all of her necessities - a bathroom (yes, Lucy had towels covering this one), a sleeping bag and a pad on the side acting as a nightstand, a weapon rack that was used so Lucy could summon any of her weapons (EX: If someone were to remove a weapon from that rack, Lucy would no longer be able to summon it), and a magical holographic job board. This is where Lucy got all of her "pleas for help" from.

The tired half-demon stretched and started to change into her pj's until she heard a ringing from her job board indicating there was a new job available.

'Hm? Weird, almost no one posts jobs late this night...' the teen thought to herself. She glanced at the board and her eyes widened.

It was a job that paid well over 5,000,000 jewels.

* * *

Natsu groaned in boredom, and said to his pal - a blue, flying, talking cat - Happy, "I wish we could go out into the city... and wouldn't it be awesome to meet infamous criminals like Gajeel Redfox, and 'The Demon'?"

Side Note - 'The Demon' is Lucy's criminal alias, as no one knows of her real name.

"Aye..." Happy agreed, looking just as bored.

These two are from the royal palace. They are Prince Natsu Dragneel and his partner Happy. They are adventurous teens (Happy is only 6, but that's a teen for his species), but unfortunately, Natsu's parents - King Igneel and Queen Grandine - would not let the duo out of the palace grounds because of the increasing number of murders in The Drag.

Suddenly, Happy's face lit up. Natsu noticed, but he simply thought it was because of the cat's love of fish.

"Natsu, Natsu! I have a great idea! Maybe we can get away from the castle for a while. We could sneak out," Happy said with a huge grin on his face.

Natsu then brightened up and yelled, "Yeah! Great idea, Happy. I'm all fired up!"

Happy's eyes sparkled. He had never seen Natsu this happy, or say his catchphrase for months now.

"Go pack, Happy. I'll look for a way out. Without disturbing the guards," Natsu said, suddenly serious again. Happy nodded and left quickly, using his Aera. Natsu started walking around the palace grounds, looking for a hole in the guards' patrols. All of a sudden, a small hand covered his mouth and Natsu felt himself being dragged into a dark recess of the palace grounds. For some reason, though, the Fire Dragon Slayer (Side Note - Yes, he is a dragon slayer in this fanfic) felt comforted and safe instead of struggling to get away.

A feminine voice hissed, "Today you're going back to Hell, Shikabane!"

Natsu spun around to see a busty teen girl about his age, with chocolate brown eyes and blond locks, and she was about 5"4.

"What the hell is a Shikabane?! And what's your problem, dragging me away just so you can threaten me with Hell?!" Natsu demanded, lighting up his fist and taking a threatening step forward.

The girl's eyes widened, and she spluttered with surprise, "You're not a Shikabane! You're... h-h-human!"

"Don't avoid the problem here! Who are you, and what do you want?!" Natsu growled, taking another step forward. The girl stepped back, shaking with fear. 'W-why am I scared... yet I am... comfortable? No, no, that can't be it... What the hell?!' the poor girl thought, trying to calculate the situation.

"My name is..." the girl - Lucy - hesitated. This would be the first time she gave her name out to anyone. However, this boy was different.

"Lucy."

* * *

"Ok...? What are you doing here, anyways? The guards will catch you, and we'll both be in deep shit then." Natsu extinguished his fist, wondering why he felt so comfortable with the girl anyways. 'Her face is familiar somehow. Maybe I met her somewhere? No that can't be it...'

"Natsu!" Happy's voice echoed through the palace grounds.

"You should go, Luce." Natsu glanced in the direction of Happy's voice. Then he looked at Lucy again, and his breath hitched. She had sprouted wings and a tail, and her blond locks turned a slight red color.

"A nickname already?" Lucy raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah, yeah, just go." Natsu turned as if to bolt towards his cat friend, until Lucy's voice stopped him.

"I never did get your name." Lucy looked at him with curious eyes.

"I thought you heard Happy call me." It was Natsu's turn to raise an eyebrow.

"I'd prefer to hear it from you yourself, unless you want me to call you pinky."

Natsu gave his signature grin, and he also gave her a cheesy thumbs up. "It's Natsu."

Lucy's jaw dropped. Nobody had ever shown her any affection throughout her life... none at all. The teen smiled, and showed Natsu her own sign (it's the Fairy Tail sign of comradeship; EX: Episode 42). She then proceeded to fall backwards off of the palace railing, opening her wings and twisting around in the air.

"Natsu! Are you ok? I didn't find you where I left you!" Happy cried. "... and by the way, who was that? Do you lllllllllike her?"

"N-n-no..." Natsu stuttered, turning beet red. "She's just a... f-friend, yeah that's it!"

"Fu fu fu, Natsu lllllllikes some weird girl with demon wings!" Happy chanted, twirling about in the air with two luggage bags.

Then, something clicked in Natsu's head. "Demon wings... 'The Demon'..." he muttered.

* * *

Lucy was pissed. And when she was pissed, she tended to get drunk at some illegal bar in BFE and then destroy things afterward - namely, buildings, wandering Shikabane, and some people's bones.

The cloaked teen stormed into the bar, and sat down so hard on a metallic bar seat that it splintered. Everyone in vicinity shied away from the scene. Everyone except 'The Demon' and her client. Unfortunately, the client of her job had no choice but to stay where he was sitting, shaking in fear. He was guilty of trying to trick 'The Demon' into killing the Prince of Magnolia and Fiore.

"So? What was all that about, bastard? The Prince is still alive, as far as I'm concerned. He is no Shikabane." Lucy tapped the wooden counter with her now-gloved hand, waiting impatiently for an answer.

"A-ah, w-well, you s-see, IjustwantedthePrinceassassin atedforrevengeagainstmyfamil y." The client rushed the last part of his defense because he knew 'The Demon' hates being kept waiting.

"Poor excuse, scoundrel." Lucy summoned her scythe and pinned the client to a wall, the poisoned blade inches from his throat. She then growled, "If I so much as ever see your face again, baka, I will tear your throat out and feed it to the Shikabane I keep as tools. You understand?"

The poor man nodded his head a million-a-second and bolted from the room. 'The Demon' let go of her scythe, causing it to teleport back to her weapon rack. (Oi, it rhymes... :3) She stood, strolled over to the bartender, who flinched, and she commanded, "Gimme three bottles of red rum. I want them fast, bub."

The poor bartender nodded quickly - just like the client of Lucy's messed up job - and ignored everyone else's orders to grab three rather large bottles of red rum, and quickly passed it to the cloaked teen. The bartender then leaned over to 'The Demon' and whispered, "Free of charge. You do a noble thing, killing all those Shikabane."

Lucy just shrugged and replied in a just as soft voice, "It's my job. I don't give a shit about what's right or not."

The bartender just nodded and muttered, "Just be careful out there kid..."

(Side Note: Everyone knows 'The Demon' is a teen of about 17 or 18. However, no one knows her gender [her voice goes deeper and monotone when talking in public] or genetics.)

As Lucy sipped her rum, she thought about that evening's events. Natsu could very well be in danger by being the only person to know her true name. Yet he didn't know she was 'The Demon'... right?

Lucy just sighed again, feeling lonely. 'Wait... I haven't felt like this since...' the teen thought in surprise, but then she shook her head. It was time to feed some hungry Shikabane.

With the body parts of some evildoers.

**Sooooo... How was my first horror/romance fanfic chappy? You like? Review. You hate? Review. Don't care? Review. ;3 And I personally would like to thank .52 for reminding me to go faster on this project, and for the support. ^.^**

**~Kakomine**


	2. Shikabane

Chapter 2

Lucy sighed and unlocked the pen of Shikabane she kept as useful tools. About 15 sets of red eyes glared back at her, but the teen was unfazed. She dumped the contents of a bag she was holding, and the body parts of several illegal clients, black market traders, and other Shikabane rolled out in a grotesque pile.

All of the red eyes glanced at the pile of 'food' and then looked to Lucy as if asking permission to eat. The teen simply gave a slight nod and strode out of the pen so she wouldn't get caught up in their feeding frenzy. She locked the pen and threw her cloak back on, as she was going to wander the streets of Magnolia tonight.

Lucy sighed again and whispered, "I need a little more excitement in my life..."

Natsu was sniffing around town. As weird as that might sound, he was a Dragon Slayer, and he was tracking a certain blond he met a few hours ago. Unfortunately for Happy, the scent led straight to The Drag, so the poor exceed had to keep his Aera activated longer so he couldn't be reached by drunk or violent people easily.

The Fire Dragon Slayer heard an almost-silent commotion in the alley next to the dark streets he was striding along in. He signaled Happy to stop moving and keep quiet, and Natsu peeked around the corner.

From the boy's viewpoint, he was witnessing a murder. A cloaked figure had just cleaved someone's right arm off with a scythe. It looked like it was dripping something, presumably poison. The 'person' who had just got their arm cleaved off stilled and didn't move. Natsu was about to escape the scene before a familiar feminine voice stopped him.

"Come, now, Shikabane. I know you're not dead, so stop trying to make things harder for yourself. I'm even on my break!" the female voice grumbled.

"I-I'm not de...ad. I bee...ca...me iiinvinnc...ible," the 'person' moaned out. It definitely did not sound human.

"Tch!" the cloaked figure snorted. "Prove it, fool."

The Shikabane charged at the now still cloaked figure with a superhuman speed. Natsu thought with panic, 'Move out of the way, baka!'

Instead, the cloaked figure just swung the scythe and cleaved the Shikabane in half. It was such a grotesque sight that Natsu covered Happy's eyes (Happy had come to check out the commotion as well when the teen signaled him to stop).

"That's what you get for messing with 'The Demon'," the feminine voice muttered with disgust, "Pity, too, I could've added this one to my collection."

Natsu and Happy's eyes widened when they heard 'The Demon'. _Holy shit!_ Natsu mouthed to Happy.

"And I know you guys are there." Natsu and Happy heard the voice soften from the cold, menacing tone from earlier. Natsu just gritted his teeth, however. 'The Demon' had just killed someone, and he wasn't gonna stand for that. He charged with flaming fists, yelling and ignoring Happy's warnings to be careful.

'The Demon' was not expecting the attack, so she let go of the scythe and it disappeared. Instead, she summoned a two-bladed sword and spun it around menacingly. She grinned and dropped her cloak to reveal her true blond self. She was in a tight, form-fitting, black jumpsuit with the a bone of each of her captive Shikabane around her waist like a belt.

Natsu's jaw dropped in surprise. "Y-you?!" he stuttered, clearly confused.

Lucy did a mock bow. "The one and only. Pity none of the higher-ups appreciate my work to protect the city..."

"Protect?!" Natsu yelled, his whole body going up in flames. "You just killed someone!"

"Tch!" Lucy snorted. "No, that was a Shikabane. A walking corpse that talks, eats, and breathes like us. They are evil, and try to infect anyone in sight. The Devil hired me to send these people back to Hell. Unfortunately, I accidentally killed this one, so I'll have to give one of my penned-up Shikabane to the Devil."

"It looked like a person to me." Natsu's flames died down a little, but they were still there.

"Well tell me this then; since I know you were there almost the whole time, you heard it talk, yes? Did it sound human to you?" Lucy gave Natsu a don't-lie-and-try-to-cover-it-up look.

"Aye."

"Oi, Happy! Traitor!"

Lucy giggled at the duo's antics. She never, ever felt this light-hearted and happy since the incident where her family died at the hands of Shikabane. Her heart, unlike common belief, was naturally warm, kind, and generous. For Natsu and Happy, it would be very easy to befriend the half-demon.

"If you guys want, I can take you in for a while. All the inns here have about a 110% chance of having most of your stuff stolen, so I wouldn't go there if I were you." Lucy shrugged, then turned into her half-demon form (the one mentioned earlier with reddish blond hair, wings, and tail). "Your choice."

Natsu and Happy, though, looked like they were in hysterics. "Ohmygod, Happy... Were we just invited to where 'The Demon' lives?!"

"A-aye... sir..."

Lucy just smirked. "Oh, please. Just call me Lucy. Plus, my place isn't that great, but it's home. By the way," the teen continued, "you should have Happy carry you. We can't necessarily walk to where I live."

Natsu and Happy just glanced at each other with VERY confused faces, and they shrugged. Happy grabbed Natsu by the shoulders and activated his Aera, looking at Lucy for directions. Lucy motioned for them to follow, but to also be extremely silent. The girl started flapping her demon wings and gaining altitude, she jetted toward some other part of The Drag. Happy trailed behind.

* * *

"We're here."

Lucy alighted on the top of a building, folding her wings and tossing her cloak to where her sleeping bag was. Natsu and Happy landed a few moments after that, looking around Lucy's place with wide eyes.

"Woah! This is so cool! ... Wait, how do people not notice this place?" Natsu looked down into the now-crowded streets of The Drag.

"Illusionary magic. All they see are abandoned air vents. It took a whole day to get all of this here, including the magic that shrouds us," Lucy explained, looking bored. "But I never bring food up here. I always keep the food container in the pen of Shikabane I have below, under the building itself. Speaking of that... I still need to give up the Shikabane I owe."

"Oh... Wait, you KEEP Shikabane?!" Natsu shouted the last part.

"Yeah. I can summon them with these bones on my waist. And the ones I keep are super strong and smart, unlike most Shikabane."

"That's so cool! I wanna see them!" Natsu pumped his fist in the air.

"O-okay..." Lucy did not know what to say. One moment the temperamental Fire Dragon Slayer was almost appalled at the thought of keeping Shikabane, and the next he wanted to see all of her penned-up ones. Her sweat dropped.

The pair left Happy on the roof (Happy: Hehehe...) and Lucy led the way into the building's basement. It was dark, humid, and foul.

Lucy pulled out an obsidian key and inserted it into the lock. She then warned Natsu, "You might wanna stay back..."

Lucy turned the lock...

* * *

"ARGH!" King Igneel growled in frustration. "Where did my flame-headed son and his blue neko go?!"

A guard walked to the front of the throne shakily and stuttered, "Y-your M-m-majesty... He... um... e-e-escaped... f-from the castle g-grounds."

King Igneel's face contorted in confusion and rage.

"Find him," he snarled.

**Lalalalalalalalalalalalalala lalalala! I love writing cliffhangers! Sorry for the long wait, I'm busy with homework, science fair, golf, and etc. Plus, I'm going to be getting even more homework, believe it or not, but I'm just trying to warn you guys. Gomenesai... Anyway, ja ne for now!**

**~Kakomine**


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